[Chapter Size: 1900 Words.]
Third Person POV
Hogwarts.
...
...
"Was it you, wasn't it?"
The question hung in the air as Snape stared straight ahead, with Lily glaring at him.
No one talked about anything else once the second newspaper appeared. After all, even though everyone had seen the smoke in the morning, the professors had refused to give much information about what had happened.
The students who initially had been...
Lily, even though she had heard Snape's words the last time they met—when he told her they should no longer be seen together—knew he had something to do with the destruction of the Acromantula nests. After all, she had been with him the last time Snape was in the process of destroying that Acromantula nest.
"It doesn't matter, does it?" Snape looked at her before starting to walk away without saying anything else, leaving Lily there, alone.
Snape went to his laboratory and spent the next few hours preparing a new batch of potions before heading to Professor Slughorn's office in the late afternoon.
"Professor Slughorn..." he said, entering.
"Mr. Snape, come in!" the professor greeted as Snape approached with a bag.
"I'm here to deliver 100 hair-growth potions," Snape stated as he placed them on the professor's desk, who raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Excellent, very well!" he said while checking the contents.
"I'm sure many in my social circle, as well as friends of those you sold to last year, will be eager to use them as well," the professor commented as Snape nodded.
"I'll leave them with you then," Snape said.
"Yes... Just to let you know, I've heard from some sources that the Potters are going to launch their own hair treatment potion next week. But it's a treatment, nothing like yours. Still, isn't it about time you officially introduced your formula to the market? I'm sure you could gain many benefits, even if that's not quite your style," he remarked as Snape shook his head.
"I don't care about that. Money isn't that precious to me, though I still need it. But now I have other ways to obtain it. So I'll leave these potions with you to sell to those interested in buying," Snape said.
"Alright..." In the end, Slughorn nodded as Snape suddenly remembered something.
"One more thing. I found something during my travels over the holidays—this crystal fell from a meteor near where I was. Could you analyze it and find the best way to use it?"
Snape took out the glowing crystal, which was clearly a powerful energy source. The professor's eyes widened upon seeing it.
"This... how magnificent... I've never seen anything like it," he said, stepping closer and examining the crystal.
It was over 30 centimeters long and weighed about five kilos, its continuous blue glow unlike anything found in the wizarding world.
"Can you find out something about it and how it might be used? It clearly has powerful energetic properties," Snape asked.
As a former guardian who had lived in civilizations far more advanced than this world, he knew exactly how it could be used in technological means—but in the wizarding world, that was another matter entirely. That's why he sought out a specialist who could help him here.
"I'll do that, Mr. Snape," the professor replied, though his eyes never left the crystal for a moment.
Snape left the office after that, only to find someone waiting for him in the hallway.
"Are you free, Severus?"
Rosaria asked, as a few students nearby whispered among themselves.
"What's that bag?" Snape inquired, eyeing the item in her hand, knowing that Rosaria wasn't usually one to carry such things.
"A gift for you. Will you take me to where your Graphorn is? I'm sure it will love this," she said.
Snape nodded, knowing she was referring to the female Graphorn.
Without caring about the onlookers, Snape grabbed her arm and disappeared, reappearing inside the Room of Requirement.
Rosaria immediately looked around, a bit surprised.
"You certainly have good taste. So this is where you live? I did hear that you were never seen in Slytherin anymore..." she commented before turning her gaze toward another girl standing in the middle of the room.
"Severus!"
Pandora was looking at the books on the shelf with Dobby when they appeared. Snape gave her a slight nod in greeting.
"..."
Rosaria seemed to frown at that, while Pandora also looked at them before smiling.
"Professor Valenstein. Seeing that Snape brought you here as well means he trusts you."
She smiled, not seeming very surprised by Snape's appearance with the professor. Despite the rumors, she didn't seem to see anything happening between them, even though the professor clearly had a strong interest in Snape.
And he acted as he always did.
"Let's go," Snape finally said.
"Do you need anything, master?" Dobby immediately asked upon seeing Snape, glancing cautiously at Rosaria.
"No. Come, Rosaria, follow me," Snape said as he entered the aviary.
"Wait, you called me by my first name!"
She seemed delighted, watching as Snape disappeared ahead of her, quickly following behind.
When Snape arrived, Atlas seemed a bit frustrated. His master had been giving him much less food than usual, which annoyed him. He had spent a whole month enjoying the best days of his life, where all he had to do was eat and sleep. But Snape wanted him back in shape, making him exercise and eat only what was necessary—Atlas certainly didn't like that.
However, when he saw Rosaria, his eyes lit up as if he were seeing his true owner.
"This guy..." Snape scoffed as the Graphorn ignored him and went straight to the half-vampire, who greeted him with a gentle stroke on his head.
"Atlas... How have you been? I hope Snape hasn't been too hard on you."
She spoke while covering her nose with a handkerchief.
The Graphorn, already accustomed to the redhead's behavior, looked at her as if begging to be taken away from Snape once and for all.
"Maybe I should do just that," Snape muttered, knowing exactly what the creature meant by that expression.
"Anyway, I brought you a companion."
Rosaria said as she reached into her bag.
A moment later, to Atlas's surprise, another Graphorn appeared, distorting as it emerged from the bag and fully materialized before them. It was a young female, just like Atlas.
The female Graphorn looked slightly surprised by the surroundings as Rosaria stepped forward.
"This is your new owner, Severus Snape," she pointed toward Snape before turning back to him. "Her name is Rosa," she added.
"You could be a bit more creative with the name, couldn't you?" Snape remarked, while Rosaria scratched her head, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Anyway, the Graphorn is yours now. Take care of her," she said with a sweet smile.
The Graphorn looked at Snape, approaching and sniffing him. The next moment, she suddenly lunged at him, trying to push him with her head—something common among Graphorns, a way to test strength.
Snape easily held his ground as she attempted to shove him, stopping her in her tracks. She remained there, continuously trying to push him.
He quickly maneuvered past her head, then moved to her side, swiftly tackling her underbelly, lifting her and knocking her to the ground—proving that he was the leader there, just as he had done with Atlas.
None of them noticed Atlas standing nearby, his eyes locked onto Rosa.
He seemed dazed as she got up from the ground, taking her first steps in the new space.
Rosa glanced at Atlas, narrowing her eyes.
Atlas, more excited than he had ever been in his life, eagerly awaited the chance to greet her.
But Rosa only looked at him with disgust.
Seeing one of her kind, yet lacking the muscles he should have—just excess fat—was completely unappealing to her for mating. So, she simply turned away and went to explore the new environment.
"Looks like your appearance isn't attractive at all, Atlas. You won't even get a mate like this," Snape mocked, watching as Atlas might finally have the motivation to regain his former strength.
"Well... I guess this is my fault..."
Rosaria murmured, knowing she had been the one to overfeed him.
"Anyway. Let's go," Snape said, his eyes falling on Shadow, who was flying overhead, observing the entire interaction. He simply acknowledged his owl with a nod before starting to leave.
Rosaria followed him, asking questions about the place as she explored. Meanwhile, Snape had some tasks to attend to in the laboratory with the shadows. She still looked displeased about the presence of another girl there, but she said nothing.
Days passed, and no one talked about anything else besides recent events. Once again, the Ministry of Magic had no answers. What followed was a crisis in public opinion.
"The Ministry of Magic is unable to stop the Death Eaters and has no answers for the strange events that have been happening for over a year."
"Why does Dumbledore seem so cornered now? He has done nothing. Last year, he also failed to protect his students—the Hogsmeade attack still left many victims, and there are no answers about the one who killed the attackers."
"Who is the mysterious killer of Hogsmeade and the Dark Wizard Hunter? Is he a vigilante trying to do what everyone else fails to accomplish?"
These were the headlines that continued to circulate as more and more unanswered questions arose. The wizarding community began to feel uneasy about the performance of those who were supposed to ensure everyone's safety.
Snape was the reason behind all of this. He was indirectly weakening the authority of the wizarding world and creating an opportunity for the Death Eaters to act more openly. Not that he had done it on purpose, but this was the situation that was beginning to unfold.
The Ministry was working harder than ever, while the professors at Hogwarts were more concerned than ever. Meanwhile, Dumbledore's disappearance continued, and no one knew where he was—not even the Death Eaters, or they would have already taken action.
The Hogsmeade killer, the mysterious alchemist…
And yet, the very person everyone was searching for was now standing in front of what appeared to be an ordinary Hogwarts painting. However, for all Gryffindor students, it was something special.
The woman inside the portrait looked at him strangely.
"What do you want?!"
She asked, displeased by his presence—after all, he was a Slytherin student.
"You can't come in here! If you try, I'll call the Headmaster!"
She threatened, since she was the guardian of Gryffindor Tower and could never allow a Slytherin student to enter.
Snape didn't seem to hear her at all. Instead, he was looking at a system notification that announced this place as a dungeon.
[Do you wish to enter this portal?]
The system asked, and Snape nodded.
The Fat Lady, as she was called, gasped in shock as Snape suddenly distorted and stepped into her portrait.
"What?! H-he's going inside me!!!"
She screamed at the top of her lungs, though there seemed to be some strange hint of pleasure in her voice.
Snape, however, paid no attention to her.
In the next moment, the scene shifted as he entered a new challenge—to grow stronger and expand his army of shadows.
-------------Nexts Chapters ----------------
Chapter 176 - Some matters in Diagon Alley.
Chapter 181 - Dealing with the Arrogant Nott Family
Chapter 191 - The Battle in the Muggle World 04.
Chapter 200 - The tournament.
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